An Enlightening Experience

Te Ao Hou, March 1965, Page 54

An Enlightening Experience Our stay here has been an enlightening experience. Until a year ago I knew Indonesia only through such sources as newspaper reports. The picture I had was of a strange, unpredictable people given to violence, living in a land of snakes, tigers and buffalo. Well, the snakes, tigers, monkeys and buffalo are here, and certainly the language and customs of the people are different. Indonesia is indeed a land of contrasts; out in the paddy-field one may watch a man ploughing with oxen and ancient wooden plough, while in the skies overhead jet-fighters dive and twist. Shepherd boys with their sheep hug the grass verge of the street, while Mercedes Benz, Chevs, Dodges and Chryslers flash by. Palatial homes cling to the cool slopes of the hills, while on the flats the poorer people crowd into one room or prepare to spend the night under a bridge. Yet despite all the differences, Indonesians are much like you and me; like us they desire a full and happy life, and the opportunity for all to use their talents to the fullest extent. The Rev. Lane Tauroa was born in Russell. He obtained his B.A. degree at Auckland University in 1953 and later did some advanced study in New York. Before leaving New Zealand he was pastor in the King Country Methodist Circuit, living at Te Kuiti. He and his wife, formerly Mavis Dickie of Dunedin, have two small children.